What are bans for?

I've been playing this game for years (I started a couple days before rumble was released... I think) and lately I have noticed something. I no longer look at bans as something to do with strategy.

See when I started champions were typically designed as such: they were really great at one or two things, and then had glaring weaknesses in other areas. For a perfect example see . This guy is absolutely fucking devastating as a short range sustain fighter (low range? one step up from melee). Now to make up for his insane sustain and good damage he has low ms, no cc to speak of, a previously mentioned short range, and a giant hole where his early game should be. Now I am not saying that is a paragon of balance, he's had more than a few times in the limelight. All I'm pointing out is that he has a very clearly defined kit.

Back when champs like were the norm, bans meant something totally different than they mean now. Back then you banned based of what you were trying play. Are you playing an insane poke comp? maybe cut out and some of the more brutal assassins (who at the point were actual assassins, not wave clearing monsters with good poke AND all in). Trying for a big tank ball that protects your adc? Get those assassins, and any big disruption out of there, while leaving a few big engages for yourself.

Now though, I just ban people because they're really fucking good. Like when I set up a game I don't ban because she has traits that hurt my team, I ban her because she has a really great early, mid, and late game with few meaningful drawbacks. same goes for champs like by kit, as well as some champs who are just thriving in the current INSANE item environment .

Earlier I pointed out Vlad (who admittedly has been a nightmare on a few occasions) as a champion with very clear drawbacks in his kit, who truly suffers if he gets punished during his subpar early game. Contrast that with someone like Zed (yes yes I know he's at around 50% win rate) who has an objectively better kit. Riot has become so obsessed with "fall back patterns" and "counterplay" that they have created champions that are just GOOD with no drawbacks.

Add into all of this the totally bonkers itemization lately ( seriously?) and you have a pick ban phase that is basically the developers admitting they have no idea how to balance their own game, so you might as well just remove bits of it from play. The balance in this game has been getting worse and worse this season, after starting in what I considered a pretty alright spot (aside from a few outliers, ) it has just become more and more pathetic.

TLDR: bans used to be strategic thing, now it's just he player doing riot's job for them